Centrica and Mitsubishi plan to use ammonia as a form of low-carbon energy capable of storing and transporting hydrogen.
Centrica, the parent company of Bord Gáis, plans to build an ammonia processing plant in Cork with Mitsubishi Power Europe.
The two corporations have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to explore the development, structure and operation of the facility, which would be at Bord Gáis’ Whitegate Power Station in Cork.
Centrica said the facility would be the first power plant of its kind in Europe and that there is only one such plant in the world. The goal is to use this power plant as a “global demonstration site” to test the viability of ammonia as a form of green energy.
The concept is to use ammonia as a way to harness the strength of hydrogen, as ammonia comprises hydrogen bonds. Centrica said low-carbon ammonia has a higher volumetric density than hydrogen, suggesting that ammonia can be used as an easier way to ship and buy. hydrogen.
The corporations said low-carbon ammonia can be produced by synthesizing nitrogen with green hydrogen, made from renewable electrical energy, or blue hydrogen, usually made from natural gas.
This power plant is expected to use ammonia as a blank and sustainable fuel source to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while ensuring security of supply.
“This is one of many projects Centrica is undertaking to demonstrate how the hydrogen economy can work in practice,” said Chris O’Shea, CEO of Centrica Group. “In this case, we hope to show how hydrogen can be stored and transported as low-carbon ammonia, offering cleaner energy to consumers at the point of use. “
The ammonia for this allocation would come from Centrica Energy’s global advertising network. An allocation team is being formed to assess the feasibility of the allocation proposal.
Earlier this year, a study suggested that a certain compound containing the mineral perovskite could be used alone as a way to store and transport ammonia.
Meanwhile, Spanish electrical applications company Iberdrola signed an agreement with US-based Trammo earlier this year to produce and distribute up to 100,000 tonnes of green ammonia per year by 2026.
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